jan 1, 1853 - Creation of the Hunan Army

Description:

From about 1850, local militias in Hunan around the city of Changsha organized into larger armed forces that were rooted in that locality, but also used Western arms and modern training. Zeng Guofan came to lead the top-level organization, the Hunan Army. The Hunan Army was one of the most significant armies of the late Qing and is credited with heroic efforts against the Taiping, although later nationalists sometimes remembered them as traitors.

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